When I filled a prescription at my supermarket’s pharmacy recently, the line of customers snaked down an aisle of toiletries. I surfed on my phone for a few minutes as I waited but eventually took note of the products on display around me. To the right, endless shampoos, conditioners, sprays, and other hair care items. To the left, nothing but rows and rows of toothpaste.
If you’re a Millennial or older, I’ll bet you’ve brushed a time or two with Crest or Colgate. Both products have dominated the toothpaste market since their humble beginnings in the 1950s. I was raised on Crest and saw no reason to change brands as a young adult. But these days, like most anything I put into my mouth I’m a little more selective.
The shelves of toothpaste in my supermarket caught my attention for two reasons. First, the options from a single manufacturer these days are daunting. Crest may have only eight product lines (like “Gum Health” or “Kids”) but that translates to a total of fifty-seven unique tubes of paste. Wow. So you’re telling me you’d know which one would be perfect for you?
My second observation: there are surprisingly few players in the game for a product each of us uses at least twice a day. Crest and Colgate dominate the shelf space; I’d put the number at 85%. The other 15% – at least in my supermarket – goes to products from Sensodyne and Arm & Hammer. Sensodyne targets those of you with sensitive teeth. Arm & Hammer promotes, naturally, the perceived benefits of baking soda.
The truth is, there are dozens of toothpastes besides Crest and Colgate. Just think of it like a chessboard: you have the two kings and then you have the rest of the pieces. Those pieces include a few that make me nostalgic. For a short time I had a “brush” with Pepsodent; its unique taste flavored with sassafras. My dentist’s recommendations during my cavity-prone years included Mentadent and Aim (neither of which took hold). And honorable mention goes to Pearl Drops, which I never tried but was the first product to add sex appeal to brushing your teeth.
I don’t know anyone who uses Pepsodent or Pearl Drops anymore, but I also think Crest and Colgate are finally getting serious challengers. Today’s generation (and those behind it) is more enlightened. In fact, my own choice for my toothbrush – Earthpaste – has to be purchased at a specialty store or online.
I’ve talked about Earthpaste before, in Polishing the Pearls. That post was more about the ingredients in toothpaste than the products themselves. But ingredients certainly matter. Crest contains between fifteen and twenty (and some are better left in a science lab). Earthpaste contains just five, including bentonite clay, salt, and essential oils. I have no problem putting any of those in my mouth, including the “dirt” of bentonite clay.
The truth is, if you can stand the bitter taste you can just brush with baking soda. It’s a short list of ingredient that actually benefit your dental hygiene. And for me, the habits I’ve locked in besides brushing far outweigh the importance of which toothpaste I choose. Daily flossing (at night). Oral rinses. Toothpicks for my close-together teeth. Recent trips to the dentist would suggest I’ve got a good regimen going.
As for you Gen X, Y, Z and especially Alpha members, there’s a palpable point to this post. 99% of humans will continue to brush with toothpaste. Crest and Colgate still dominate the market seventy-odd years after their debuts (at least in America). It seems to me there’s room for another low-ingredient high-health product like Earthpaste. I’d fire up that home chemistry lab before someone else beats you to it. There’s potential prodigious profit in the production of paste!
Some content sourced from Wikipedia, “the free encyclopedia”.
Life In A Word 
I used to be particular about toothpaste, shampoo, conditioner, and soap. But now I just use all the products that get abandoned at my house. My grandchildren won’t use the products their mother brings over for them. Or someone buys products they decide they don’t like. I hate waste!
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I was just buying toothpaste, to your point, there were so many choices. Ridiculous really. I wonder if they are different or if the company just changes the outside packaging to indicate it’s different. I haven’t heard of Earthpaste.
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I grew up in a Crest family but have recently strayed into Sensodyne some days. Every time I go to the dentist they hand me a different expensive toothpaste to try, the last time it was Sensodyne.
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The biggest game changer for my mouth health has been using a waterpik and Colgate Prevident toothpaste! Hard to say which has been more effective since I started using both at about the same time…
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A hygienist recently recommended I floss at night instead of first thing in the morning. That change makes a ton of sense to me.
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If you get a comment from Anonymous about waterpik and Colgate Prevident – that was me. For some reason my comments on many blogs are not showing up or if they do, they are from Anonymous, even though I am logged in to WordPress.
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Going to the grocery store and honing in on your preferred brand and type is a nightmare – rows and rows of toothpaste and in the case of Colgate, all red boxes that look alike. Like you Dave, I began with Crest as a kid and just stuck with it – even now. I used to use Pearl Drops once a day and liked it, but then it wasn’t available any longer … around here anyway. I did switch to baking soda, despite the taste, but my dentist discouraged it saying vigorous brushing would wear the enamel off my teeth – yikes! So I stopped using it. I use the same regimen for my teeth and back when I had a mouthful of braces (the old-fashioned, metal, wrap-around-each-tooth type) which were tightened once a month, it was recommended to use a Water Pik. I liked it, but no longer use it – it was messy. Good oral health is important, not only for your smile, but for your heart!
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I think we use the Crest 3D white, but I don’t think it really helps. I’m sure it’s all marketing! I’m not super particular about my toothpaste, but I need the smooth glide dental floss, the regular string is just a no go for me.
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Interesting how we all have particular preferences, but I guess that’s why Crest has so many options on the shelf. I prefer the string floss myself but I get how the smoother stuff would have appeal too.
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And I’ll bet the endless options are all the same inside except for one or two ingredients and/or flavors.
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Like everything else in stores, the big players push everyone else off the shelves.
Obsolete toothpastes would be a great blog topic. I remember when Aim was a big deal. And Topol, “the smoker’s toothpaste.” Ultra-Bright anyone? I always loved the flavor of Pepsodent. But now I find myself on the red team with one of eleventy-five choices of Colgate.
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Ultra-Bright! I was trying to remember the toothpaste with the stripes of color through it. Pretty sure that was the one, even if it never earned a spot in my bathroom drawer.
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